Marijuana Expungement Bill Passed Unanimously by Maryland Senate
Maryland’s full Senate has given approval to Senate Bill 949 to allow marijuana expungements.
The proposal was passed by the Senate Wednesday with a unanimous 47 to 0 vote. A companion bill – House Bill 379 – was passed today by the House Judiciary Committee.
The proposed laws “expands eligibility for expungements to include convictions for possession of marijuana under § 5-601 of the Criminal Law Article before October 1, 2014.” October 1st, 2014 marked the first day of a law that decriminalized the possession of small amounts of marijuana in the state.
The bill requires “that filing fees for petitions for expungements collected by the District Court be remitted to the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC).” The AOC may “use money received from filing fees only for the purpose of funding the processing of expungements.”
If the legislation is passed by the full House of Representatives, it will be sent to Governor Larry Hogan for consideration.
